Spanish motifs in Glinka's works. Jota is a Spanish folk dance. Topic: “Spanish motifs in the works of M.I. Glinka”
Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka.
"Aragonese Jota"
(Brilliant capriccio on the theme of Aragonese Jota)
Spanish Overture No. 1 (1845)
Evgeny Svetlanov, conductor
"Night in Madrid"
(Memories of summer night in Madrid)
Spanish Overture No. 2
Evgeny Svetlanov, conductor
U.S.S.R. Symphony Orchestra
History of creation
In 1840, Glinka spent several months in Paris. In his “Notes” he recalled: “...I learned that Liszt had gone to Spain. This circumstance aroused my long-standing desire to visit Spain so strongly that, without delay, I wrote about it to my mother, who did not suddenly or even soon agree to this venture of mine, fearing for me. Without wasting any time, I got down to business.”
The “business” consisted of hastily mastering the Spanish language and went very successfully. When the composer went to Spain in May 1845, he already spoke almost fluent Spanish. He visited Burgos and Valladolid. He got a horse and traveled around the area. “In the evenings, neighbors, neighbors and acquaintances gathered with us, sang, danced and talked,” Glinka continues her memoirs in “Notes.” - Among acquaintances, the son of a local merchant... smartly played the guitar, especially the Aragonese jota, which I retained in my memory with its variations and then in Madrid, in September or October of the same year, I made a piece out of them under the name “Capriccio brilliante” , which later, on the advice of Prince Odoevsky, he called the Spanish Overture." Even later, the work became known as the Spanish Overture No. 1, but it became best known as the Aragonese Jota. The first performance took place on March 15, 1850. Odoevsky’s response to this concert has been preserved: “The miracle worker involuntarily takes us into the warm southern night, surrounds us with all its ghosts, you hear the jingling of a guitar, the cheerful knock of castanets, a black-browed beauty dances before your eyes, and the characteristic melody is then lost in the distance, then appears again in all its glory."
From Valladolid, Glinka went to Madrid. “Soon after arriving in Madrid, I started working on Jota. Then, having finished it, he carefully studied Spanish music, namely the tunes of common people. One zagal (a stagecoach mule driver) came to visit me and sang folk songs, which I tried to catch and put to notes. I especially liked the two Seguedillas manchegas (airs de la Mancha) and subsequently served me for the second Spanish Overture.”
It was created later, in Warsaw, where the composer lived in 1848-1851. Glinka originally titled his work “Memories of Castile.” It was performed in St. Petersburg on March 15, 1850, in the same concert as the Aragonese Jota. Not completely satisfied with the result, in August 1851 the composer worked on the second edition. It was she who began to be called “Night in Madrid”, or “Memory of a Summer Night in Madrid”, was dedicated to the St. Petersburg Philharmonic Society and was first performed in St. Petersburg under the direction of K. Schubert on April 2, 1852 in a concert of this Society; The concert program was composed entirely of Glinka's works. This edition was later published, and remained as the only correct one.
Music
“Aragonese Jota” opens with a slow introduction, full of restrained strength and grandeur, with solemn fanfares, alternating fortissimo and secretly quiet sounds. In the main section (allegro), first in a light pizzicato of strings and plucking of the harp, and then the bright, cheerful theme of jota sounds more and more richly and fully. It is replaced by an expressive melodious melody from the woodwinds. Both themes alternate in a bright bloom of orchestral colors, preparing the appearance of another theme - an elegant and graceful melody with a touch of playfulness, reminiscent of mandolin strumming. Subsequently, all topics become more excited and intense. Their development brings drama, even severity, to the music. One of the jota motifs is repeated in a low register against the background of the introduction fanfare, which acquires a menacing character. Anticipation builds. With the roar of timpani, fragments of dance appear, gradually the theme of jota takes on more and more clear outlines, and now again it sparkles in full splendor. A stormy, uncontrollable dance absorbs everything in its whirlwind. All themes, intonationally drawing closer, rush through in a jubilant flow. The majestic, triumphant tutti completes the picture of folk fun.
“Night in Madrid” begins as if gradually, as if the future melody is being felt in individual motifs, interrupted by pauses. Gradually the theme of jota is born, it becomes more and more distinct and now, flexible, graceful, it sounds in a brilliant orchestral outfit. The second theme is close in nature to the first and seems to be its continuation. Both melodies are repeated, varied, intricately intertwined in a subtle and colorful orchestral sound, creating an almost visible picture of a warm, aromatic southern night.
“Aragonese jota” (Brilliant capriccio on the theme of Aragonese jota)
Spanish Overture No. 1 (1845)
Orchestra composition: 2 flutes, 2 oboes, 2 clarinets, 3 bassoons, 4 horns, 2 trumpets, 3 trombones, ophicleides (tuba), timpani, castanets, cymbals, bass drum, harp, strings.
"A Night in Madrid" (Memories of a Summer Night in Madrid)
Spanish Overture No. 2 (1848-1851)
Orchestra composition: 2 flutes, 2 oboes, 2 clarinets, 2 bassoons, 4 horns, 2 trumpets, trombone, timpani, triangle, castanets, snare drum, cymbals, bass drum, strings.
History of creation
In 1840, Glinka spent several months in Paris. In his “Notes” he recalled: “...I learned that Liszt had gone to Spain. This circumstance aroused my long-standing desire to visit Spain so strongly that, without delay, I wrote about it to my mother, who did not suddenly or even soon agree to this venture of mine, fearing for me. Without wasting any time, I got down to business.”
The “business” consisted of hastily mastering the Spanish language and went very successfully. When the composer went to Spain in May 1845, he already spoke almost fluent Spanish. He visited Burgos and Valladolid. He got a horse and traveled around the area. “In the evenings, neighbors, neighbors and acquaintances gathered with us, sang, danced and talked,” Glinka continues her memoirs in “Notes.” - Among acquaintances, the son of a local merchant... smartly played the guitar, especially the Aragonese jota, which I retained in my memory with its variations and then in Madrid, in September or October of the same year, I made a piece out of them under the name “Capriccio brilliante” , which later, on the advice of Prince Odoevsky, he called the Spanish Overture." Even later, the work became known as the Spanish Overture No. 1, but it became best known as the Aragonese Jota. The first performance took place on March 15, 1850. Odoevsky’s response to this concert has been preserved: “The miracle worker involuntarily takes us into the warm southern night, surrounds us with all its ghosts, you hear the jingling of a guitar, the cheerful knock of castanets, a black-browed beauty dances before your eyes, and the characteristic melody is then lost in the distance, then appears again in all its glory."
From Valladolid, Glinka went to Madrid. “Soon after arriving in Madrid, I started working on Jota. Then, having finished it, he carefully studied Spanish music, namely the tunes of common people. One zagal (a stagecoach mule driver) came to visit me and sang folk songs, which I tried to catch and put to notes. I especially liked the two Seguedillas manchegas (airs de la Mancha) and subsequently served me for the second Spanish Overture.”
It was created later, in Warsaw, where the composer lived in 1848-1851. Glinka originally titled his work “Memories of Castile.” It was performed in St. Petersburg on March 15, 1850, in the same concert as the Aragonese Jota. Not completely satisfied with the result, in August 1851 the composer worked on the second edition. It was she who began to be called “Night in Madrid”, or “Memory of a Summer Night in Madrid”, was dedicated to the St. Petersburg Philharmonic Society and was first performed in St. Petersburg under the direction of K. Schubert on April 2, 1852 in a concert of this Society; The concert program was composed entirely of Glinka's works. This edition was later published, and remained as the only correct one.
Music
« Aragonese jota"opens with a slow introduction, full of restrained strength and grandeur, with solemn fanfares, alternating fortissimo and secretly quiet sounds. In the main section (allegro), first in a light pizzicato of strings and plucking of the harp, and then the bright, cheerful theme of jota sounds more and more richly and fully. It is replaced by an expressive melodious melody from the woodwinds. Both themes alternate in a bright bloom of orchestral colors, preparing the appearance of another theme - an elegant and graceful melody with a touch of playfulness, reminiscent of mandolin strumming. Subsequently, all topics become more excited and intense. Their development brings drama, even severity, to the music. One of the jota motifs is repeated in a low register against the background of the introduction fanfare, which acquires a menacing character. Anticipation builds. With the roar of timpani, fragments of dance appear, gradually the theme of jota takes on more and more clear outlines, and now again it sparkles in full splendor. A stormy, uncontrollable dance absorbs everything in its whirlwind. All themes, intonationally drawing closer, rush through in a jubilant stream. The majestic, triumphant tutti completes the picture of folk fun.
« Night in Madrid"begins gradually, as if the future melody is being felt in individual motifs, interrupted by pauses. Gradually the theme of jota is born, it becomes more and more distinct and now, flexible, graceful, it sounds in a brilliant orchestral outfit. The second theme is close in nature to the first and seems to be its continuation. Both melodies are repeated, varied, intricately intertwined in a subtle and colorful orchestral sound, creating an almost visible picture of a warm, aromatic southern night.
M Ikhail Glinka was always attracted by Spain, which he had long known from books, paintings, and least of all from music. Composers from many countries then wrote romances in the spirit of Spanish folk music and Spanish dances. It was in vogue, but it was not authentic Spanish music.
The idea of seeing Spain with one’s own eyes took on its real embodiment during the period of Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka’s stay in Paris.
IN In the museums of Paris, Glinka saw many paintings by famous painters of Spain: portraits of Spanish courtiers, created by the brush of the great Velazquez, looking with a cold and cruel smile, paintings by Murillo depicting the Madonna, saints and angels, endowed with such earthly, human beauty that they evoked even in the most religious viewer not a prayerful mood, but admiration and joy.
TO What was Spain itself, which gave the world such a writer as the great Cervantes, such artists as Velazquez and Murillo - Glinka did not know this, but really wanted to know.
R The Russian composer did not intend to be an idle, entertaining traveler in Spain. To get to know Spain meant for him, first of all, to get to know the Spanish people, their language, their music. And so, in Glinka’s small Parisian apartment, books about Spain appeared, geographic Maps and "Don Quixote" on Spanish, which Mikhail Glinka diligently studied.
IN During almost a year of Mikhail Ivanovich’s stay in France, where he began studying Spanish, the concert program of his works, held in April 1845, was quite successful, and already on May 13, 1845, Glinka left Paris and set off on his intended journey. The Spaniard Don Santiago Hernandez went with him, with whom he practiced spoken Spanish in Paris. The third companion was Rosario, Don Santiago’s nine-year-old daughter, a sweet, cheerful chatterbox who endured all the difficulties of the road without complaint or fatigue. And this road was the most difficult of all that Glinka traveled in his life. The path from the Spanish border lay through the mountains, along a narrow stone path, accessible only by riding horses and mules.
IN So, on horseback, and then on mules, Glinka and his companions had to travel to the first Spanish city of Pampluna. Then they rode on a stagecoach, which turned out to be unusually comfortable and pleasant.
IN from and Valladolid - the city where Don Santiago’s family lived and where Glinka hoped to rest after a difficult journey. He liked the small town, not listed among the attractions of Spain, but beautiful and picturesque in its own way, and liked the modest patriarchal family of Santiago.
N Nowhere abroad did Mikhail Glinka feel as at ease as in Spain, among sociable and friendly people. Rest, evening horseback rides, and sometimes playing music with new Spanish acquaintances filled all the time. So the summer passed. Glinka felt that here he could forget all the sorrows of the past, he could return to creativity, to life.
IN New, bright impressions lay ahead. The ancient palaces of Segovia, the fountains of San Idelfonso, which reminded Glinka of Peterhof; other cities and villages, most of them ancient, breathing the harsh grandeur of the former glory and power of Spain, which once dominated half the world.
A then Madrid, quite modern, cheerful and elegant, with eternal bustle in the streets and squares. Here, as in Paris, Glinka spent all his time walking around the city, visiting palaces, museums, visiting theaters, becoming more and more familiar with Spanish life, especially since he was already fluent in the language.
M Glinka visited many remarkable places during the two years he spent in Spain. They were almost entirely devoted to travel. He visited Toledo, a fortified city that has preserved its medieval appearance more than others, and saw Escorial, the palace of the most Catholic of kings, the cruel Philip II. The huge, gloomy building, more like a monastery or even a prison, rising in the middle of a deserted plain, made a depressing impression on Glinka, but it was smoothed over by the fact that he undertook his first excursion to El Escorial accompanied by two beautiful Spanish women.
Z Glinka spent 1845-46 in the south of Spain, in Granada, a city located in a picturesque valley surrounded by a chain high mountains. Glinka settled in one of the suburban houses, from the windows of which the entire valley of Granada, part of the city and the Alhambra were visible - an ancient fortress that had been preserved since the rule of the Moors. The Alhambra Palace - a bizarre creation of exquisite art and skill of architects - captivated Glinka with the coolness of its spacious galleries, the play of chiaroscuro on the carved, lace-like marble of columns, arches, and vaults.
IN In the very first days of Glinka’s stay in Granada, he, by force of circumstances, made an acquaintance with one interesting person, whose name was Don Francisco Bueno y Moreno. In the past, this Spaniard was a smuggler (a common occupation in Spain at that time), but having made a decent fortune, he decided to become an honest citizen. Don Francisco started a glove factory and, in addition, traded leather. It was this former smuggler who introduced Glinka to real Andalusian music performed by a guitarist, this is what Glinka himself writes about this in his “Notes”: “On the next or third day he introduced me to the best guitarist in Granada named Murciano. This Murciano was a simple, illiterate man; he sold wine in his own tavern. He played unusually deftly and clearly. Variations on the local national dance Fandango, composed by him and set to notes by his son, testified to his musical talent...”
R
In the autumn of 1846, on the advice and invitation of one of his Spanish acquaintances, he went to the fair in Murcia in a village gig - a “tartan” along roads that, according to the composer’s own definition, were worse than Russian country roads. But he saw rural Spain, completely unfamiliar and inaccessible to ordinary foreign travelers, he saw daily life people, their work, their entertainment. He heard the real music of Spain. Glinka studied it not in theaters and concert halls, but on the streets and roads, as well as at home, performed by folk singers and
guitarists. Song and dance were inseparable here, and “Don Miguel,” as the Spaniards called Glinka, decided to study the dances of the Spanish people. Probably, none of my St. Petersburg acquaintances would have recognized Mikhail Ivanovich if they saw him dancing the jota with castanets in his hands!
B The large album and music notebook that Glinka took with her to Spain were gradually filled with drawings and autographs of new acquaintances, and recordings of Spanish songs. Everything attracted Glinka: the songs of the mule drivers, and the dances of the dancers in small taverns located right on the streets.
E Those songs and dances were truly amazing. The listener heard three different musical rhythms: one in the song, another in the guitarist’s playing, and a third in the tapping of the dancer’s castanets. But these three rhythms merged into a single harmonious whole.
| Aragonese jota. From a painting by M. Hus |
E That melody was the basis for a symphonic work written by Glinka in Spain - “Aragonese Jota,” one of the two “Spanish Overtures” that later became famous. “Aragonese Jota” was not a simple arrangement of a folk melody - in it Glinka conveyed the very essence of the music of Spain and painted vivid pictures of the life of the Spanish people.
| Don Pedro. Photo. Mid-19th century |
H what happened to Don Pedro? Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka presents the events rather sparingly, focusing more on the affairs with the young ladies and ladies he met on his travels, which, on the whole, does not in any way violate the spirit of that time, which has already changed the principles of courtliness. I don’t know how the Spaniard’s fate and musical career turned out in Russia. What did this Fernandez Nelasco Sendino find in Russia, what was his further path, or further wanderings? Eh...
M.I. Glinka was the first Russian composer to visit Spain (1845-1847). He studied the culture, customs, and language of the Spanish people; recorded Spanish melodies (from folk singers and guitarists), observed folk festivals. Since the secular music of Spain, sounded in theaters at that time, was largely influenced by Italian music, he was more interested in the “tunes of the common people.” Glinka recorded about 20 folk tunes with unaccompanied texts in Madrid and Granada. His Spanish impressions inspired him to create two symphonic overtures. These are “The Aragonese Hunt” (1845) and “Memory of a Summer Night in Madrid” (1848-51), which reproduce pictures of the life of the Spanish people.
Spanish folklore dictated to the composer a special approach to material, form, and orchestration. Both overtures are far from the usual genre processing folk melody. Glinka sought to reach a new level of artistic generalization, capturing the very spirit of the nation. Creating scenes from folk life, he strengthened the procedural-event nature of the sound. Both overtures use such a compositional technique as an extended introduction and coda (“beginning” and “end” of the dance scene), a sharp switch from one plane to another.
"Aragonese Jota"
Spanish Overture No. 1 (1845)
In “Aragonese Jota,” the composer turned to the most popular Spanish folk theme. Hearing it performed by Spanish guitarists, he was delighted with its unique, cheerful grace. This is the melody of jota (Spanish jota) - the national Spanish three-beat dance, which has become one of the musical symbols of Spain. It was with this that Glinka’s very first impressions of Spanish culture were connected.
"Aragonese Jota" opens slowly introduction in the character of a severe march-procession (Grave). His music, with solemn fanfares and contrasting changes in dynamics, is full of restrained strength and grandeur. This is an image of harsh and beautiful Spain. After characterizing the “scene of action,” development switches to a “specific event” plan. In the sonata section, in bright contrast to the introduction, a picture of festive folk fun emerges.
The instrumentation masterfully conveys the flavor of Spanish folk music. Light pizzicato of the strings and plucking of the harp reveal the poetic image of the guitar strumming ( 1st theme of the main part- an authentic Aragonese jota melody), woodwinds imitate singing in the vocal part of the dance ( 2nd theme of the main part- copla).
Using the sonata form, Glinka does not abandon the method of variation. He combines motivic development with varying material. Already within the framework of the main part (double tripartite form ababa) there is a variation of themes. IN side party, elegant and graceful, reminiscent of the strumming of a mandolin, Glinka brilliantly realizes the characteristic compositional feature of folk hota. The harmonic plan of all melodies of this genre is the same - TD D T. On this basis, the melodies themselves can be heard as variants of each other. This is exactly how both topics of the side game are perceived. They are added to the original rhythmic formula of the jota of two sounds (TD DT) as counterpoints, thereby forming a series of variations (8 bars up to number 10).
The development is based on the principle of a gradual increase in dynamics, with constant switching of plans: solo scenes, as if “snatched” from the general mass, are replaced by the brilliant sound of the entire orchestra. Before the central climax, the sound of the jota is interrupted by the secretly alarming timpani tremolo and brass fanfare, recalling the theme of the introduction - this is Spain, the land of unbridled passions.
The highest point of development is marked by the dazzlingly bright theme of jota, carried out by the entire orchestra. It almost tangibly reveals the picture of nationwide rejoicing.
Reprise(ts. 18) is a true apotheosis of variation in sonata form. The main and secondary themes, which seemed to be different themes in the exhibition, look here as a single sequence of variations on a given harmony.
Syncopated fanfare codes form a thematic arc to the introduction, but are painted in bright, festive colors.
So, the uniqueness of Glinka’s jota is that the sonata dynamism of its form is enhanced thanks to the commonality of themes that opens up in the process of variation.
In this overture, Glinka uses a large orchestra. A special role is played by castanets - a Spanish instrument that emphasizes the national flavor, as well as the harp.
"Memory of a Summer Night in Madrid" (or "Night in Madrid")
Spanish Overture No. 2 (1848-1851)
The image of a summer southern night is one of the most characteristic symbols of Spain. It was widely developed in European poetry. The landscape here often becomes the backdrop for the intense life of human emotions, revealed in the mysterious “rustles” of the night.
The dramaturgy of Glinka's “Nights in Madrid” is in many ways unconventional for the 19th century, which is due to the peculiarities of the artistic concept: the embodiment of images of Spain as if through the haze of passing time. The composition creates a feeling of randomness of musical pictures that spontaneously arise in the mind of the traveler. After a little introductions, depicting a night landscape, four authentic Spanish themes follow one after another. They alternate according to the principle of contrast: the graceful jota is replaced by a colorful Moorish melody, then the rapid first seguidilla sounds, followed by a more melodious, smooth second seguidilla. In the second part of the overture, all themes occur in reverse, mirror order. The letter diagram of the essay - A B C D D C B A - reflects the concentric shape.
The apparent randomness of phenomena following each other does not at all deprive “Night in Madrid” of its compositional harmony. As in the first overture, the composer managed to translate folk elements into the form of a purely symphonic development.
Compared to the first “Spanish Overture,” there are fewer external contrasts, but more unique timbre discoveries. Glinka uses the most subtle, airy, watercolor-transparent nuances of the orchestral palette: divisi of strings in the high register, harmonics of violins and cellos, staccato passages of woodwind instruments. It is interesting that “A Night in Madrid” does not use the harp at all, which was so prominent in “Aragonese Jota”. The guitar flavor here is embodied more indirectly, through a subtle stylization of the ornamental techniques of folk music. With its refinement of orchestral writing, Glinka's score anticipates the trends of musical impressionism.
An interesting technique is the “anticipation” of themes: first the accompaniment appears, and only then against its background the outlines of the dance itself are revealed.
Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka / Mikhail Glinka
"Aragonese Jota" (Brilliant capriccio on the theme of Aragonese Jota)
In 1840, Glinka spent several months in Paris. In his “Notes” he recalled: “...I learned that Liszt had gone to Spain. This circumstance aroused my long-standing desire to visit Spain so strongly that, without delay, I wrote about it to my mother, who did not suddenly or even soon agree to this venture of mine, fearing for me. Without wasting any time, I got down to business.”The “business” consisted of hastily mastering the Spanish language and went very successfully. When the composer went to Spain in May 1845, he already spoke almost fluent Spanish. He visited Burgos and Valladolid. He got a horse and traveled around the area. “In the evenings, neighbors, neighbors and acquaintances gathered at our place, sang, danced and talked,” Glinka continues her memoirs in “Notes.” — Among acquaintances, the son of a local merchant... smartly played the guitar, especially the Aragonese jota, which I retained in my memory with its variations and then in Madrid, in September or October of the same year, I made a piece out of them under the name “Capriccio brilliante” , which later, on the advice of Prince Odoevsky, he called the Spanish Overture." Even later, the work became known as the Spanish Overture No. 1, but it became best known as the Aragonese Jota. The first performance took place on March 15, 1850. Odoevsky’s response to this concert has been preserved: “The miracle worker involuntarily takes us into the warm southern night, surrounds us with all its ghosts, you hear the jingling of a guitar, the cheerful knock of castanets, a black-browed beauty dances before your eyes, and the characteristic melody is then lost in the distance, then appears again in all its glory."
« Aragonese jota"opens with a slow introduction, full of restrained strength and grandeur, with solemn fanfares, alternating fortissimo and secretly quiet sounds. In the main section (allegro), first in a light pizzicato of strings and plucking of the harp, and then the bright, cheerful theme of jota sounds more and more richly and fully. It is replaced by an expressive melodious melody from the woodwinds. Both themes alternate in a bright bloom of orchestral colors, preparing the appearance of another theme - an elegant and graceful melody with a touch of playfulness, reminiscent of mandolin strumming. Subsequently, all topics become more excited and intense. Their development brings drama, even severity, to the music. One of the jota motifs is repeated in a low register against the background of the introduction fanfare, which acquires a menacing character. Anticipation builds. With the roar of timpani, fragments of dance appear, gradually the theme of jota takes on more and more clear outlines, and now again it sparkles in full splendor. A stormy, uncontrollable dance absorbs everything in its whirlwind. All themes, intonationally drawing closer, rush through in a jubilant stream. The majestic, triumphant tutti completes the picture of folk fun.
